New Lion Clamshell Operation Feature

nvidia2008nvidia2008
Posted:
in macOS edited January 2014
For those using clamshell mode in Lion, I discovered today it will automatically take you out of clamshell mode if you open the lid of the laptop even slightly.



Some of us like to open the lid of the laptop slightly for ventilation, not trusting a fully-closed running MacBook/Pro to be able to handle the heat well enough.



But heck, if Apple pretty much endorses running clamshell with the lid fully closed, and you have no choice about it in Lion, maybe just leave the lid closed and be at peace?



Nah, I'm old skool.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 5
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    OK interesting thing just happened. If you open your lid a bit more, then close it a bit more just leaving a bit of gap, it will go back to original clamshell mode (i.e. driving only one monitor).
  • Reply 2 of 5
    yeezyyeezy Posts: 4member
    Great! I was a little reluctant to operating solely clamshell mode because I figured the computer would get warm, but this is a good (temporary?) fix. Although, the MBA display looks nice on my external monitor when I'm able to extend it upwards to 1900x1200 and stuff.
  • Reply 3 of 5
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by nvidia2008 View Post


    Some of us like to open the lid of the laptop slightly for ventilation, not trusting a fully-closed running MacBook/Pro to be able to handle the heat well enough.



    Get a cooling tray (probably noisy) or just trust it. I'd trust it. My 24" 2.8 Ghz Core2Duo mid-2007 iMac gets absolutely boiling at the back but I've just learned to not think about the heat and my machine never melted down yet. Even with the SSD drive I got peeps to install, and they run hotter than spinning drives.
  • Reply 4 of 5
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Ireland View Post


    Get a cooling tray (probably noisy) or just trust it. I'd trust it. My 24" 2.8 Ghz Core2Duo mid-2007 iMac gets absolutely boiling at the back but I've just learned to not think about the heat and my machine never melted down yet. Even with the SSD drive I got peeps to install, and they run hotter than spinning drives.



    It's alright, I just close the lid to just a one-inch gap and it autoswitches to clamshell mode. I'm glad I have the gap, it gives me enough peace-of-mind, definitely helps airflow and I don't need any extra cooling.



    It's all very well thought out in Lion. The best part is you don't have to put the laptop to sleep with the lid closed then wake it up to run clamshell. Once the monitor and external keyboard/mouse is hooked up, the moment you close your lid enough it will autoswitch to clamshell. You must have it connected to power though, it still won't clamshell in battery-only mode.
  • Reply 5 of 5
    nvidia2008nvidia2008 Posts: 9,262member
    Oh also clamshell or not whenever connected to AC power I run the fans at 2800rpm through SMCFanControl. Yeah, maybe I should trust it more. But I'd rather the fans work just a bit harder than components working hotter.
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